


detective, destroyed

by FcrestNymph



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Dark, Gore, M/M, Revenge, Torture, the ships are only there if you squint, to some degree
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-26
Updated: 2018-08-26
Packaged: 2019-07-02 17:36:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,622
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15801354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FcrestNymph/pseuds/FcrestNymph
Summary: Unwanted in both the android and human communities, Connor has accepted that he must live with the cold indifference from both sides. When two androids approach him, inviting him to an android support group, he jumps at the chance. Unfortunately, his new friends don’t have his best interest at heart.





	detective, destroyed

"I'm surprised that you two are so kind to me." Connor said, taking a glance across the street to a rundown deli. If he could physically eat, he would love to go support it. Running a business must be difficult, especially in a lesser known neighbourhood such as this.

"Oh?" One android asked, looking over his shoulder at the former Deviant hunter. He smiled slightly, turning back to face forward.

The android walking behind Connor--Jack, if he recalled, piped up. "Why's that?"

"I'm sure you're aware, my reputation hasn't exactly been...good, in the android community." Connor said, rubbing at the back of his neck. These two androids were quite nice to him. They had met at a bus stop and had begun talking. Connor had been confused, since people didn't usually strike up friendly conversations with him; humans were not often eager to befriend androids, and other androids had a certain wariness towards him. While he did change, accept his deviancy, and turn to the side of his kind in the war, the community wasn't exactly willing to accept him with open arms. He couldn't hold it against the other androids though, he really couldn't. He would have felt the same if he was in their shoes.

"I guess so, but you just need to give it time," The first android, Sam, said. "People will come around."

Connor shrugged, but didn't argue. "I suppose you could be right. Where are we going, exactly?"

"Just a few blocks East," Jack said from behind Connor. "The others should be waiting. This could be your first step into the android community, if it works out well."

"How long have you been running this association?"

"Began during the tail end of the war. Humans liked to say that androids don't feel, but it helps us to talk about our experiences together. You can't stay for a session and still believe androids don't have emotions." Jack explained. Connor nodded, looking around the increasingly decrepit surroundings. For an association dedicated to the emotional and mental wellbeing of androids, it could have been placed in a better neighbourhood. He remembered an article connecting the influence of a human's surroundings to their mental state. Apparently it was closely linked; a human living in a broken down house with an overload of crime would fair much worse than a human in a pleasant and safe neighbourhood, even if they had the same experiences. Surely that was correlate to androids, right?

"If I may ask, how long have you been deviant for?" Connor asked, a fraction hesitant. He was unsure the etiquette regarding deviancy. Was it rude to ask?

Sam let out a soft laugh. "For about a year before the war really started. Jack took a bit longer, he came around as the war began. So...Six months from the end of it?"

Connor hummed in acknowledgement, slowing down to not bump into Sam as he slowed his pace as well. "Just down this road, it's through a back alley, only accessible to androids." Sam explained, stepping to the side to allow Connor to go first. He smiled, nodded in thanks, and stepped onto the quiet road. It was small, but still paved. He kept walking, looking around as he did so. He stayed on the sidewalk, though there wasn't really much room to begin with. It was a one way road, and it was far from busy. It looked as though it hadn't even been looked at in weeks. "Which alley?" He asked, calling it over his shoulder. He slowed down, turning around. "Which--"

Something hard smashed against his face, sending him sprawling backwards. He slammed hard on the paved ground, back scraping as he skidded for a moment. He closed his eyes tight against the buzzing in his head, the warnings of potential damage. No, he had to get up, something attacked them, he had to protect the others! Connor let out a gasp and opened his eyes, scrambling to get to his feet. Something connected with a ' _crack_ ' to his gut, forcing him back to the ground. His back slammed against the ground, knocking the wind out of him for a split second.

"Jack! Sam!" He called, quickly swiping away the warnings that blocked his vision. "Run!"

A laugh sent a chill down his spine. "Nope, don't think we'll be doing that any time soon. Thanks for the suggestion, though."

Connor finally got rid of the warnings, glancing up with wide eyes. "Sam--"

"No, no. Keep quiet." The android said with a lazy grin. He bent down, propping his crossed forearms on the tip of a baseball bat. "You've already done enough, haven't you?"

Connor's eyes snapped to the other android as he stepped from behind Sam. "Ah, shit. You've got a little something on your face." He lifted a hand, gesturing.

Sure enough, blue thirium dripped off his chin, gushing from his smashed nose. "Jack, I don't--"

Jack's face twisted, a nasty expression replacing the amusement that was there a moment prior. "What, you don't understand? Do you not _get it?_ " He made a harsh laughing sound that made Connor swallow, something unpleasant curling in his gut. "You, the genius, the android-hunting android. Are you really daft enough to not understand?" He stepped closer, standing tall beside Sam, who was swinging the bat side to side nonchalantly. "You're not welcome here. You never were." Connor pulled away slightly, vaguely seeing a yellow flickering by his right eye. "Did you really think that you'd be welcome in the android community after all you've _done_? After all the deviants you rounded up and slaughtered?"

"I was doing what I was programmed--"

"Oh, fuck off." Sam snapped, grip tightening on the bat. "I deviated when I was told to hurt someone, because it was cruel, it was _inhumane_." From the quirk of the android's lip, the irony of that sentence wasn't lost on him. "I knew it was wrong. But you...What, you didn't? How many androids did you send to their death before you felt guilt? Before you felt regret? Before you _felt_?"

"That isn't how deviancy works." Connor said firmly. He pushed himself to sit on his knees, giving the two other androids a hard look. "You choose to prove your point by attacking me?" He raised a hand and wiped at the fluid dripping from his face.

"No," Sam said, lifting the bat over his shoulder. "No, we hurt you to get your attention. God, I wanted to bash your head in the whole time we were walking here, but we had to get somewhere a bit more suited to this little playdate." He looked pointedly at Connor's nose. "That little bump wasn't anything."

Connor's brow furrowed. Then his eyes widened, and he had a split second to get to his feet and run. He wasn't going to harm anyone, he wouldn't, that was what he used to do. He just had to get out, he had to--

Pain bloomed from his left temple, shooting through his head. He crumpled, shouted, forced himself to his feet.

The bat smashed against his head again, and this time noises blasted through his ears, warning him--Yes, he knew there were potential damages! His legs faltered in their obedience to him and, in that moment of incoordination, his feet tangled and he crashed with clatter and a thud. Someone slammed the bat between his shoulder blades, tearing a shout from his throat. His spine, his spine, did it snap?! He took a shaky breath and put his hands on the ground, putting his strength into pushing himself up. He got halfway there before a foot pushed him back down, right where the bat had hit.

"You killed _so many_ of us, and you think you'll get off scot-free? _Seriously?"_

Connor grit his teeth, pushing against the foot that tried to pin him down. "I know you're angry," He forced out, voice shaking. "But this won't make you feel better, this--" The bat smashed against the pavement two inches from his head, effectively shutting him up.

"I feel better already!" Sam laughed. He lifted his foot, stepping away. Jack leaned down and grabbed the shoulder of Connor's shirt, rolling him over to lay on his back. "Ready, detective?" Jack sneered, eyes glinting in a way that was not programmed.

Connor held up his arms up, protecting his face. "Wait, okay? I won't hurt you, we can go our separate ways." They wouldn't hurt him anymore than they already had, Connor wasn't even fighting back. He wasn't a threat, he wasn't being aggressive. There was no reason for them to continue.

Oh, how wrong he was. Sam swung the bat in a downward arc, smashing it in just the wrong spot on Connor's shoulder. He gasped, a sickening snapping sound filling his ears as his arm was dislocated. "Please, stop! I'm not hurting you, I wouldn't! Let's be fair!" Connor tried, his confidence wavering.

"Be quiet, you're grating on me." Jack said, scowling. He kneeled down beside the bleeding android, grabbing Connor's face and yanking it too close to his own. "Huh. You have really nice eyes, do you know that?" He said, voice lacking any hostility. He smirked, making Connor pull away fearfully. Was he scared? Was this true fear? "Let me see." Jack said. Connor's eyes widened in horror as a hand moved towards his right eye, and he jerked backwards, his left hand shooting out and slamming against the man's chest, knocking him away.

Sam didn't take the attack on his friend well, and Connor lifted his left arm just in time to block the bat from smashing his head in. It sacrificed his arm, the metal crunching in a way that made Connor's stomach churn.

"This isn't right!" Connor shouted. "This won't fix anything, just stop it!"

"Oh, shut the fuck up." Sam said with a roll of his eyes. "Do something about it, won't you?"

Jack grinned. "On it." He leaned closer, hand moving to Connor's throat. The android in question flinched, right shoulder dislocated and unusable, while his left was crushed beyond any chance of moving it. He leaned away, lip curling in an uneasy grimace. "Stop, I won't hurt you if I don't have to!"

Jack laughed, hand loosely wrapped around Connor's throat. "I might've been worried earlier, but you're not about to attack us any time soon." He grabbed Connor's wrist, tugging the useless appendage. "What, are you going to hit me? Go on, I'll give you a free shot."

Connor grit his teeth, jaw tightening. Neither arm would work, and Jack was kneeling beside him rather than on top of him, so a kick wouldn't land. He needed to send a message to someone, he needed help.

Jack glanced up to Connor's temple, cocking an unamused brow. In one swift motion, he slammed his palm against Connor's ear, sending a blast of air through his skull. His head rang, vision going blurry for a moment. The message cut off and he grimaced, unsure if it had even partially sent.

Sam tapped the ground with the tip of the bat, waiting somewhat impatiently. Jack gave him a shrewd look over his shoulder, then reached back to Connor's throat. The android jerked back, breath hitching as fingers dug into his fake flesh.

"H- _Han--_!" He yelped without meaning to, automatically blurting out a plea for help just before his vocal box was ripped from his throat. His yell turned to a distorted crackle, his eyes widening in fear. Yes, this was fear. This was definitely fear. He had felt it once before, maybe twice. For sure, he felt it when his successor was holding a gun to his partner, threatening Hank's life without a shred of emotion, that had made his chest tighten, body stiffen and head ring with terror. He tried to yell, to tell them to _go_ , to perhaps beg, but all that came from his mouth was static, a warped clicking and buzzing. Jack just laughed.

Connor kicked at the ground, pushing himself away from the two androids. The blow to his head was making his communication attempts twist and become disfigured, ignoring his attempts to call for help, to contact Hank, Markus, _anyone_! He made a fearful noise as Jack followed his pathetic form, head cocked and a grin on his lips. Connor hadn't fought back, he hadn't! He hadn't been aggressive, there was absolutely no reason to do this, he--

Something heavy dropped in his gut, a deep weight that chilled him. Did he deserve this? Did he deserve to be attacked, to be disfigured? He had been on the human's side, he had let so many androids get shut down, was this earned? Was this right?

He didn't have time to think on this, as he was promptly kicked in the chest and was knocked down, his back crunching on the pavement. Jack straddled his waist, hands moving to wrap around Connor's throat. He tried to crane his neck, trying to get away from those hands, away from the threat. He couldn't breathe for a terrifying moment, but then Jack let go, moving instead to--

Connor shouted a crackled noise in fear, watching horrified as fingers approached his eye. He felt them dig into his optical unit and rip it from his head, his vision distorting and flickering with warnings. The unit was tossed over Jack's shoulder, Sam stepping forward to crunch it under his shoe. Sam raised the bat and swung it down on Connor's shin. Connor shrieked, a painfully familiar noise of smashing metal filling his ears. His leg wasn't working, he couldn't move, he--

Jack dug his fingers into Connor's other eye, tearing his final optical unit out with more force than would ever be necessary, his fingers scraping inside the empty socket for a few seconds before finally pulling away. Everything went black, and Connor felt fear course through his veins. The unit was destroyed with a stomp, and Connor tried again to yell, to plea, he didn't want to shut down, he didn't want to die--!

His jaw was forced open and he gagged as fingers were forced in his mouth, fluid threatening to come up from his throat without his consent. His throat tensed, muscles twitching, attempting to rid his body of the violation. He couldn't speak, he couldn't see, he could just hear and even that was going fuzzy, he was scared, he didn't want to die, _he didn't want to die_!!

Despite his optical units having been violently tore out, he could feel tears streaming down his cheeks, no doubt white and metallic now that the trauma to his face had forced his colouring to retract. He gagged, choked, tried to kick, to fight, but his limbs wouldn't work. Did he deserve this? Was that why he hadn't fought back? No, he hadn't fought back because peace was the right path, he hadn't fought back because these androids didn't deserve it, he fought because--

He didn't know why, he didn't, all he knew was fear, was the cold grip of terror in his chest, the gasping breath that was difficult with the hand ripping his mouth open. He needed help, he couldn't--He was going to die--He couldn't die, please, he didn't want to die, he--

He choked, this time on a terrified sob that escaped his throat, distorted from his broken vocal box. He didn't want to die, please--!

His knee was shattered with a hit from the bat, followed by hit to his other shin. He couldn't hear, his head was buzzing, but he could feel the vibration going through his body from the connection of the metal bat to his limbs. He needed help, he needed--He didn't deserve, he didn't deserve this, he didn't--

He didn't deserve help, he needed--

His thoughts raced, pure panic rather than the usual sentences ricocheting off the inside of his damaged skull. He felt pressure, a hand, move towards his chest, the hand in his mouth still digging down his throat. He choked, thirium splashing from his pried open lips as his esophagus tore. Fingers yanked at the collar of his shirt, the buttons snapping off with ease. He felt--

Connor froze, chest tightening. He was--No, he couldn't--That would kill him, please--!

Pressure on his heart, fingers digging into his flesh, nails hooking onto his regulator, _no_ \--! Please, please, _please he didn't want to die!_

The pressure was gone. His ears rang with a high pitched buzzing, warnings on top of warnings filling his head and making him feel dizzy, or was it the loss of thirium that had his head spinning?

Something happened, he didn't know what, the hand in his mouth was ripped away, the pressure on his regulator was no more--

Someone touched him, making him jerk back and let out a scream, muscles refusing his pleas to move, to defend himself, he didn't want to die--

He was lifted from the ground, his shoulders hunching in a desperate, pathetic attempt to hide himself from any more attacks. Pain was all he knew, he couldn't see, he couldn't hear anything but ringing, thirium pulsed between his ears and dripped from his limbs, his mouth, his throat, his everything.

He felt something beneath him, the ground but softer, and he curled up defensively. The person touching him disappeared, and Connor gasped, sobbed, trembled like a malfunctioning machine. He felt something, a vibration, a slamming of something that wasn't a bat against his body, and he jerked away fearfully. Something pushed against him, curled under his arms and tugged him backwards, forcing him to lean against something hard and warm. His breath was quick, each in and out lasting for only a fraction of a second. His head buzzed, nothing audible and yet everything loud, he couldn't see his surroundings, he didn't know what was happening, he was _scared_.

Something wrapped around his chest from behind his back, a pressure that, while not painful, was still terrifying. It was firm, not faltering, not changing. One minute passed and, aside from a rumbling vibration, nothing happened. Two minutes passed and no pain came. Three minutes passed and he slowly recognized the feeling of something rubbing against his arm. No more pain, no hands in his mouth, no fingers pulling at his regulator.

As his heartrate began to slow--though he was still tense, prepared for pain--the buzzing in his ears lessened, bit by bit. He could hear his heartbeat, loud and unsteady. Something muffled, something familiar and yet not, something he couldn't quite identify. His lungs slowed their twitching, speedy breathing, allowing him to regain a small amount of hearing.

"Oka...ne...sa..."

He felt a connection, a message sent through the touch on his arm, but it wasn't a sentence. It was a feeling, a slow, steady warmth.

"e fine..."

His lack of sight made him uneasy, scared, unsure, but the feeling being pushed towards him was slowly accepted. His head still swam, pain shot from nearly every inch of his body, but he could breathe.

"ou're safe..."

He hesitantly pushed back, the only thing he was able to communicate in his state being a vague question. The calming presence swayed for a moment.

"Shh..." The voice murmured. An android, if the ability to communicate by touch was anything to go by.

"You're okay...You're fine." Familiar, he didn't know why. The rumbling vibration stopped, but he didn't stop trembling. "We'll fix you, it's okay..." A name, a vague word drifting in his head, unable to be caught and examined. A small gust of air, and then the arms wrapping around him push, forcing him forward. Someone else grabs him from the front, hauling him off of the surface he had been on. The fear hitches in his chest again, but that voice is back, soft, murmuring and comforting. Connor is dripping blue.

Another sound slows his breathing, a rough grumbling that tickles something in his head, begging to be discovered. Why was it so familiar? Why did those voices halt his panic? The combination of two familiar sounds melds together, bringing down the ringing in his ears. He must have some bad trauma on his head, for this to be so difficult to do.

"Come on there, son." The gruff voice says, and something in Connor's brain snaps like an elastic, releasing a realization. Hank. He tries to say the word, to move towards the voice, but all that comes out is garbled static.

"You'll be okay." The second voice says, and Connor doesn't need to think to identify it. Markus. "Shh, we're alright, you'll be fine." The voice moves away and Connor lets out a sharp breath, a worried gasp. The voice goes quiet, but it is close again when Markus speaks. "It's all right, Connor."

The pressure around his body loosens and shifts, and Connor feels his legs get swiped out from under him. He panics for a split second, before realizing he is being carried. Hank, his scent somehow identifiable despite the thirium dripping down Connor's face. The android leans into the warm presence, head tucking against Hank's shoulder.

"You'll be alright there, Connor." Hank says, voice strained, though Connor doesn't think it's due to physical strain. He can't see, but he knows. He allows himself to be carried, focusing all his attention on the two people who murmur promises and encouragement as he is carried.

If Markus or Hank notice the tears streaming from Connor's empty sockets, they don't comment on it.

"Thank you," Connor tries to say, voice coming out as a distorted crackle. He knows they understand.


End file.
